Future of the club, what do we want?

Jason Stockwood has said once the takeover is completed he will be seeking a broader conversation with all supporters about the future of the club.

Where do you start after the mess they have been left with?

Hopefully a return of our once great reputation, enabling us to attract talent again, away from the penny pinching antics that Fenty brought.

Improvement in training facilities and development towards a community stadium that we can be proud of.

Training facilities is a huge one IMO.

Ours is currently a field with a tiny building in the middle of nowhere with regards motorway access etc.

This is the place players and staff spend 5/6 days a week at, its  a huge selling point for players

The available financial are the key to what we can do.  

My Top 10 wish list...

1. Cheaper season ticket/match ticket prices for under 18s and families.

2. Better match day experience (improve catering & toilet facilities etc..)

3. Improved online ticket sales (e-Tickets to avoid queuing to collect tickets)

4. New stadium confirmed with timeline for delivery set out.

5. Treating fans with respect rather than a cash cow to milk.

6 .Improved training facilities (possibly new training ground along A180 corridor to make more convenient for players)

7. Improved treatment of employees (GTFC have reputation among players as a bad club to work for)

8. Commitment to have no betting sponsorship at GTFC and object to Sky Bet deal in EFL meetings.

9. Commitment to only having proof read Club Statements issued within office hours (i.e. not at half past midnight)

10. John Fenty to be executed on the pitch prior to first home game in National League if we are relegated this season.

Quoted from GollyGTFC

My Top 10 wish list...

1. Cheaper season ticket/match ticket prices for under 18s and families.

2. Better match day experience (improve catering & toilet facilities etc..)

3. Improved online ticket sales (e-Tickets to avoid queuing to collect tickets)

4. New stadium confirmed with timeline for delivery set out.

5. Treating fans with respect rather than a cash cow to milk.

6 .Improved training facilities (possibly new training ground along A180 corridor to make more convenient for players)

7. Improved treatment of employees (GTFC have reputation among players as a bad club to work for)

8. Commitment to have no betting sponsorship at GTFC and object to Sky Bet deal in EFL meetings.

9. Commitment to only having proof read Club Statements issued within office hours (i.e. not at half past midnight)

10. John Fenty to be executed on the pitch prior to first home game in National League if we are relegated this season.

Think you got your wish list upside down  

Quoted from promotion plaice

Think you got your wish list upside down  

And maybe remove the proviso that we have to be relegated for it to happen as well?

I don't think the new owners will start spunking loads of cash about, and I'm fine with that. An end to the penny pinching false economy approach, and showing a modicum of ambition/funding to genuinley improve all aspects of the club year-on-year would be fine by me.

It would also be nice to have a core group of players that you feel an affinity with, rather than a revolving door of loan players and 12 month contracts and total squad overhauls every year. I know many on here don't agree, but I think Hurst has proved previously that he can deliver year-on-year improvements (granted, sometimes only marginal) and build a squad that fans do have an affinity with. I'd give him a 3 year contract, put an end to all the knee-jerk reactions we see on here, and have a sensible plan for progress.

Quoted from GollyGTFC

My Top 10 wish list...

1. Cheaper season ticket/match ticket prices for under 18s and families.

2. Better match day experience (improve catering & toilet facilities etc..)

3. Improved online ticket sales (e-Tickets to avoid queuing to collect tickets)

4. New stadium confirmed with timeline for delivery set out.

5. Treating fans with respect rather than a cash cow to milk.

6 .Improved training facilities (possibly new training ground along A180 corridor to make more convenient for players)

7. Improved treatment of employees (GTFC have reputation among players as a bad club to work for)

8. Commitment to have no betting sponsorship at GTFC and object to Sky Bet deal in EFL meetings.

9. Commitment to only having proof read Club Statements issued within office hours (i.e. not at half past midnight)

10. John Fenty to be executed on the pitch prior to first home game in National League if we are relegated this season.

Regarding point 6 why not situate our training ground somewhere around the start of the M180 near Doncaster? That would put an end to the excuse that new players turn us down because we are out on a limb. If set up right they would only have to come to BP on match days.

In no specific order I’d like to see on the next 3 to 5 years,

- Proper training ground in an accessible location

- final decision on a new ground, if it’s not doable just face into it and do what we can with BP as a last resort

- A playing budget that makes us competitive instead of a “competitive budget”.  

- Back room Resource at a level that makes us competitive

- Decent toilets and catering at BP

- Improved ticketing system on line & on the day

- Fairer ticketing deals for families, OAPs, shift workers and exiles and a commitment to 5 games a season where U16s go free with a paying adult.

- A proper far reaching community programme supporting & engaging those who need it rather than being used as a tool for young player recruitment

- Proper supporter engagement including a full CRM proposition and free membership scheme

- On the day experience to be unweighted, the fan zone will help

- A new shirt every 2 years as people forking out annually has driven revenue but some people can’t afford it.

- Professional PR and a full revision of the clubs media

Quoted from Roast Em Bobby

I don't think the new owners will start spunking loads of cash about, and I'm fine with that. An end to the penny pinching false economy approach, and showing a modicum of ambition/funding to genuinley improve all aspects of the club year-on-year would be fine by me.

It would also be nice to have a core group of players that you feel an affinity with, rather than a revolving door of loan players and 12 month contracts and total squad overhauls every year. I know many on here don't agree, but I think Hurst has proved previously that he can deliver year-on-year improvements (granted, sometimes only marginal) and build a squad that fans do have an affinity with. I'd give him a 3 year contract, put an end to all the knee-jerk reactions we see on here, and have a sensible plan for progress.

I agree with this, to be honest I think we’ll see regeneration over a period of time rather than revolution

Quoted from thevera

Regarding point 6 why not situate our training ground somewhere around the start of the M180 near Doncaster? That would put an end to the excuse that new players turn us down because we are out on a limb. If set up right they would only have to come to BP on match days.

I don't think we have to go to that extreme. Lincoln's new training ground is opposite RAF Scampton on the A15 which is 17 miles south of M180 J4. Stallingborough interchange is 14 miles from J4 & Great Coates interchange is around 19 miles.

If Lincoln can attract good players at Scampton we can attract good players with a training ground near to either Stallingborough or Great Coates interchange.

I would imagine relegation to the National League will have an impact on future plans if it happens (still living in hope).

We need to attract quality players, so I see new training facilities just off the A/M 180 as a first thing. This should then bring in quality players. I am sure when questioned about fans most of our ex-players will give us a big thumbs up, and with Fenty gone, there should be no negatives to stop players from coming ( dependent on wages).

Success will bring with it success and with that a new stadium. If this isn't possible then a major overhaul of BP to make it the best stadium out of the premier league. A stadium to bring championship football back to Grimsby.

Quoted from GollyGTFC

I don't think we have to go to that extreme. Lincoln's new training ground is opposite RAF Scampton on the A15 which is 17 miles south of M180 J4. Stallingborough interchange is 14 miles from J4 & Great Coates interchange is around 19 miles.

If Lincoln can attract good players at Scampton we can attract good players with a training ground near to either Stallingborough or Great Coates interchange.

Anywhere between Great Coates and Barnetby interchanges would be a vast improvement on the current location.

Having a training ground near Doncaster is a no for me , you have to think of all the players and staff that live in the area that will have to make that journey daily.

Great Coates would be ideal in my eyes best of both worlds.

A new community stadium in Freeman St is the only way we will get a new stadium unless Jason and Andrew have got a spare 30 million they want to spend.

Whatever happens things will be a lot better than the last 17+ years.

Training facilities.
Coaching and fitness staff
A general improved professional set up
Longer term a new stadium.
Most of all a feel good positive attitude around the club.

Quoted from GollyGTFC

My Top 10 wish list...

10. John Fenty to be executed on the pitch prior to first home game in National League if we are relegated this season.

Wouldn’t that be countryside?

I just want a club that I can be proud to support again that represents the towns of Grimsby and Cleethorpes. Treat the fans as fans and not cash sponges to throw the blame at when things go wrong. A sense of being Grimsby, the club should never forget it's history while it aims for the future. Give the players something that makes them proud to pull on the black and white. Treat the players right and give them a decent working environment but also get them to feel part of the community. Do that and the geographical backwater excuse will be almost forgotten, players, like all of us, perform better when they are happy.

Give me back my club.

Red socks

I want to see Supporters' representation on the board, baked in as the true guardians of the club's heritage.

True engagement with supporters.

Continued transparency in the company accounts. One thing the old regime has got right.

Avoidance of deliberately misleading statements. No playing with words in order to disguise the truth without outright lying.

This should provide a firm foundation for whatever else is decided.

Some of what Golly said: for example, no sponsorship from gambling companies.

Quoted from Jarmo.Is.God

Training facilities is a huge one IMO.

Ours is currently a field with a tiny building in the middle of nowhere with regards motorway access etc.

This is the place players and staff spend 5/6 days a week at, its  a huge selling point for players

    Lets sell cheapside and create a top class training facility somewhere near doncaster, which should attract better players as they won't have to travel down that awful road the A180.

Champions League Football with in 7 years.

Some good football please.

Quoted from Ruston AT

    Lets sell cheapside and create a top class training facility somewhere near doncaster, which should attract better players as they won't have to travel down that awful road the A180.

Think it's leased/rented.

Haven’t read all the comments but I’d be happy to not have an egotistical sharp object use the clubs website to promote his nonsense...

A return to our traditional blue and white hooped kit, renamed Grimsby Pelham and get the blue and brown away kit back.

Quoted from Ruston AT

    Lets sell cheapside and create a top class training facility somewhere near doncaster, which should attract better players as they won't have to travel down that awful road the A180.

It's not ours to sell....other than that great idea

I think it’s worth taking a risk by pumping most of the finances into better training facilities to make the club more appealing to prospective signings. I’d take a few seasons of no real Improvement on the pitch, hoping to just plod along in whatever league we may be in, for the sake of creating a new positive foundation for the club to build on and progress. Let’s get back into the 21st Century and make this club more competitive not just on the pitch but also off it it.

Are modern footballers so useless that they can’t commute? I read the suggestions of moving the training ground nearer the A180 with disbelief.

Why would you relocate the trading ground into another county, why not offer decent mid term contracts and a strong incentive package instead?

Quoted from realist

Are modern footballers so useless that they can’t commute? I read the suggestions of moving the training ground nearer the A180 with disbelief.

So you don't think havimg the training ground 30 minutes closer for potential signings who live near Leeds/Sheffield etc, wouldn't have a positive impact on recruitment?

Love an ironic username, me.

Quoted from grimsby pete

Having a training ground near Doncaster is a no for me , you have to think of all the players and staff that live in the area that will have to make that journey daily.

Great Coates would be ideal in my eyes best of both worlds.

A new community stadium in Freeman St is the only way we will get a new stadium unless Jason and Andrew have got a spare 30 million they want to spend.

Whatever happens things will be a lot better than the last 17+ years.

The office staff would still be working from the new staduim it would only be those involved in the playing side having to travel but I bet most of them travel  the length of the  M180 already, Doig travels from Birmingham every day. Even so it takes 35 minutes to get to the start of the M180 at Doncaster from Freeman Street..

Quoted from realist

Are modern footballers so useless that they can’t commute? I read the suggestions of moving the training ground nearer the A180 with disbelief.

The question isn't about being so useless they can't commute. The question is if "Footballer A" has 2 options and 1 in a 50 minute motorway commute & the other is a 50 minute motorway commute followed by about 25 minutes getting around/through Grimsby to get to Cheapside which option will the player take?

It's only 25 minutes though? But twice a day- 50 minutes. And four times a week- 3 hours 20 minutes. For 45 weeks of the year- 150 hours.

So suddenly that 25 minutes is nearly a whole week of extra time in the car commuting per season.

And before somebody argues about the players moving to NE Lincolnshire, we're now in the age of short term contracts. You can't expect a player to move to the area when they've only been given a 1 or 2 year contract.

There are obviously lots of things we can change, but for me, it's about how the new owners market the club. For too long, the club has sat and expected fans to simply turn up and to keep attracting the next generation of fans in, but that simply doesn't work. It's far too easy for people to sit in their armchairs watching Skysports than going to watch a team lingering in the lower leagues, barely able to bang in a goal a game.

As painful as it is to see, Lincoln are the prime example of how solid marketing and a culture change can transform the whole club - who would have foreseen 5 or 6 years ago the situation Lincoln would be in now - not necessarily in terms of league position but in gates and general enthusiasm for the club? At the minute, I'd imagine too many of our fans attend games (or did) out of a sense of duty, routine and a longing for what the club once was as opposed to what it currently is.

But with a few changes the club can easily be propelled into a forward-thinking, modern club. Any takeover would be a welcome change, but the fact Jason Stockwood is involved gives me extra confidence as he seems to have a track record of doing exactly the above - and the fact there'll be a survey is indicative of this.

Exciting times to be a Grimsby Town fan, and even if we end up in non-league next season, I think we'll see some successful years in the not-too-distant future.

A winning team.

Sort all the rest out in due course. But we need to see a winning team, whichever division we are in, to rekindle the enthusiasm of the fans.

GTFC not being an embarrassment on and off the pitch would be nice!

Generally Stockwood bringing his business ethos to permeate everything that the club does would be a huge improvement
Appoint a CEO and bring the club into the 21st century in terms of facilities, marketing, ticketing, merchandise etc etc
i'd like them to go and look abroad at how small clubs who punch above their weight have achieved that


i'm really looking forward to their first press conference and hearing their views and thoughts for the future

A club that appreciates what the fans want from a matchday experience & work hard to make it a reality. Rather than treating fans like an inconvenience to be bullied, silenced, milked and fúcked off ready to be seen in a fortnight.

Home games need some of that “away game” feeling.

So much to do we are virtually starting from scratch. I'd start with fundermentals like a vision, club footballing  philosophy and then build from there.

Quite an easy response to the OP's question

F E N T Y   O U T

UTM GTID

Fenty to be forced to give the trust shares back and banned from the ground for life.

If you were a non league player on a 1 or 2 year contract why would you relocate to the GY area . These are the days of low incomes and short term deals . It’s unrealistic to expect players to uproot families etc etc . I’d go as far as to relocate the training centre to the midlands ie derby to maximise the players who’d be willing to sign .

I want our club to regain its reputation which has been demolished by that cretin.

A Football League Club with a team that shows some pride in its performance.

Quoted from FishOutOfWater

Quite an easy response to the OP's question

F E N T Y   O U T

UTM GTID

Oh and also after this afternoon....

P A Y N E   O U T

A fresh start. This is a low point in the history of GTFC.

A manager who can win more than a couple of games.

Quoted from thevera

Regarding point 6 why not situate our training ground somewhere around the start of the M180 near Doncaster? That would put an end to the excuse that new players turn us down because we are out on a limb. If set up right they would only have to come to BP on match days.

We could move the training ground to somewhere just off the halfway mark of the M1 so it's easily accessible to players based in both the north and south of the country.

We could then move the ground somewhere that's commuting distance from both London and Birmingham. Somewhere like... Milton Keynes. Oh hang on....

Quoted from moosey_club

A return to our traditional blue and white hooped kit, renamed Grimsby Pelham and get the blue and brown away kit back.

Now you're talking. I'd love the chocolate and blue as a strip. What happened to Grimsby White Star, alleged first club formed in Grimsby.

Having supported the mariners from afar  for 41 years 51 in total just would like the Board to consider a few 'wants "

I. Proper investment 2. Honesty 3.Treat our supporters with a family approach/respect in it together.
4. Vision ( look at other clubs and see what they are doing and embrace their forward thinking )

This will bring Positivity and eventually bring success which is what we all all want UTM

After all we have a strong passionate fan base that love our club  

Why should the likes of Harry Clifton or even James McKeown, an honorary Grimbarian who moved locally have to travel to Doncaster for training?

Whilst I get the argument for moving from Cheapside, it should be no further than Barnetby Top but even that is pushing it.

I'd like the club to return to where Fenty's dismal reign started,

Take the club back into CHAMPIONSHIP

and in doing so prove how wrong Fenty was in his stewardship of the club.

I have signed in to comment on this thread.
Not going to bother though.
UTM

A competitive  team that entertains with attractive football  (in the EFL preferably)

A club for all not just Fenty and his cronies